How to Write More Blog Posts

Where the magic happens. 

I'll let you in on a little secret.  Actually, it is not a secret.  It's just an underused tool we bloggers have.  It's called "Scheduled Posts." Right now, I have in my post list 3 drafts in progress and 3 posts scheduled to be published.  I love this feature.  And here is why.

First, it makes my blogging time so much more controllable.  I do not have to spend as much time all at once pouring over one post.  I simply get an idea and start a draft.  Then when a moment allows, I flesh it out, little by little.  As more time allows, I add pictures or proof read it or polish it a bit. In the course of a few days it is ready to be scheduled.  Simple! 

Second, it fosters more creativity on my part.  I find myself thinking about things I could write about.  I write more.  I get a little better at it, just like my kids, whom I encourage to write and re-write.  Perhaps it will even keep my brain younger?

And lastly, it makes my blog seem like an active, vibrant place, a place where you know you will read something new every couple days or so.  Being consistent builds a community. Communities are much needed in our line of work where we are frequently alone all day with KIDS! 

The next time you get an extra moment and an idea, sit down and start a draft.  Let it sit for a few days or come back to it when you have a free moment and give it a tweak.  Come back another day and add a picture.  When it is ready to publish, click "post options".  From there you click "scheduled at".  Pick your time and date.  Then click "publish post".  Then start another draft and repeat.  

So there you have it.  Why not give it a try yourself?

Goals for the Week

I’m finding a need to be a bit SMART {specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time sensitive} with my plans and goals for this week! So here is the plan…

Home Management

• Do dishes every night before bed
• Sweep kitchen floor every morning
• Do 10 minute pick up every afternoon and as needed
• Clean bathrooms daily (train/ teach kids again)
• Mop floors as needed (kids help)
• Purge!  Purge!  Purge! 

 Relationships

• Write one letter to a shut-in this week.
• Hug my kids every day. 
• Look for opportunities to serve my husband (go above and beyond)
• Lunch with visiting grandma

Reading

• Read one chapter a day for pure enjoyment.

Health

• Take at least 3 walks or bike rides this week.  Does not matter how fast or far, just do it! 
• Limit sugar, keep eating those fruits, whole grains and veggies
• Find more healthy snack ideas that will appeal to the kids
• Take time to chop veggies, make salads, bake healthy bread (In other words, don't be lazy in this area!)
  

General

• Do not turn on the computer until morning chores are done, not even for a quick check of spam on cbox
• Buy some Easter treats  
• Plan our little kitchen garden

I will let you all know how I do later in the week.  What are some of your goals for this week? 

Weekly Wrap-Up

In which we enjoy life, despite a minor setback!

Sunday:
After church and Sunday school, the weather was so amazingly warm (upper 70's) that my husband decided to open up the camper and do some cleaning.  We all enjoyed some time just relaxing out there too.  It won't be long now!  

Monday:
Celebrated the end of homeschool gym.  Sad to say good bye to new friends, though.  Hopefully we will see them this fall when it starts up again.

We went to lunch at a grocery store salad bar, which can't be beat for freshness.  Here was my lunch. 

Doesn't he look 13?  I mean, look at that forced smile!  

We also went to the library after lunch.  They had been begging me for a couple weeks.  I was not in a hurry to go as I had a 70 cent fine to pay!  Now my conscience is clear. 

Spent my hour of solitude during dance catching up on my reader.  Read a great post about 12 year old girls,  too.

On the bad news side, my poor dear husband came down with a bad cold today.  


Tuesday:

The sun is shining!  Friends are coming over after lessons! What more could  we want?  This was also the day of the yogurt experiment.  More on that later.  All was well until the boys started to complain of sore throats.  *sigh*

Getting ideas for her new doll house she is building.

Wednesday:

 Trevor has a low grade fever now.  Are we all doomed?  I am taking my vitamins and washing my hands! 

My van's gas tank is on fumes, so there is no running around today.  I want to fill up on next week's budget, which starts on Friday so that this week will be a really good week.

Thankfully the boys were well enough to do school work. But Trevor now has a fever of 101.6.  Ryan seems better though. 

No AWANA tonight! Can you say happy dance time?  Having an evening without any running around will be a treat. We decide to stay up a little later than usual to watch an old movie as a family. 

The doll house bedroom.

Thursday:

May need food today, but I think I can squeak out another meal or two.  We certainly need gas if I am going to get the food.  Also need to take kids who are able to karate this evening.  So, I guess I will get gas tonight.  This tank almost lasted 3 weeks.  That's pretty good.  I really try to do all my running locally and in batches.

I let the kids sleep in yesterday and today.  I am thankful we homeschool so that they can get extra rest when they are not well. And, when they are not well, we can still get lessons of some sort done.   

My afternoon treat. 

Light Iced Coffee

8 oz. milk of your choice (I use skim)

Leftover coffee (about 4-6 oz.)

Sweetener to taste (I use 2 Stevia packets) 

Pour milk into your glass.  Add sweetener and stir.  Add ice cubes.  

Pour coffee into milk and stir.  Top with light whipped cream. 

Friday:

Wondering if the standing weekly play date will have to be cancelled. At the very least, Trevor won't be participating.  Thanks to my nice friend, who let Ryan and Grace come there.  I kept Trevor, although he didn't like that.  He's been fever free all day, but my rule for getting near other children is to be fever free without Tylenol for 24 hours.  Sorry Trevor. 

Also needed to get food for certain.  I was unable to put that off again. Grace and I headed out this morning while the boys did some of their independent work.  

We will need to do a little reading to fill in some holes from the week.  I guess we will do that tomorrow.

Ryan finished his Math U See Zeta book today as well.  Time to order again!

Saturday:

This might be the last working Saturday for my dear husband.  No promises.  Can't count on it.  Should not even be thinking about it.  *grin*

Going to put some effort into the house again.  I feel like doing more purging! 

Need to make a treat to take to my grandma.  We're going to see her tomorrow after church.

Always the clown!

My Memory Verse This Week:

Ecclesiastes 9:10

 "Whatever you do, do well.

For when you go to the grave,

 there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom." 

~* * *~

Thank you for stopping by.  I hope you've had a great week, too!
Jenn

In Which We Study Prudence

If only a fairy could wave her wand...

What is prudence?  

prudence

PRU'DENCE, n. [L. prudentia.] Wisdom applied to practice.

Prudence implies caution in deliberating and consulting on the most suitable means to accomplish valuable purposes, and the exercise of sagacity in discerning and selecting them. Prudence differs from wisdom in this, that prudence implies more caution and reserve than wisdom, or is exercised more in foreseeing and avoiding evil, than in devising and executing that which is good. It is sometimes mere caution or circumspection.

Prudence is principally in reference to actions to be done, and due means, order, season and method of doing or not doing.

from Noah Webster's 1828 Dictionary   (I just love that dictionary!)

This month begins our study of prudence.  We just finished our formal study of wisdom, not that we will ever arrive. Now we attempt to put wisdom into action.  Much harder to do than it should be.

The specific area we are looking at is taking care of ourselves. This includes eating well, exercising, keeping clean, getting enough sleep, and other good habits.

One of my goals in this area is to increase our daily physical activity.  We might go for a walk or a bike ride.  We may go to a park and explore.  We will have to overcome my natural tendency to be at rest! 


I have already purged our pantry of white floury junk.  Now, I want to find healthy treats to bake.  (Is there such a thing?) The whole grain oatmeal raisin cookies that I made had too much fat and sugar to really be called healthy.  Maybe we should make some gingersnaps and angel food cake?

We also have one child who has  an aversion to keeping clean and tidy.  I know this is just an age thing.  When I was this same age, I was the same way.  However, it is an area that needs improvement.

And Mr. Teen needs to learn that going to bed at a decent hour is imperative to his well being the next day. 

My sincere hope is that my children will take these lessons to heat  before it is too late for them.  Sometimes I really wonder if I am reaching their hearts with anything!  If only there was a magic wand to wave and all would be prudent, including myself.  Lots of prayer is needed, for certain.


Here are some of the verses we will be studying.  

"The prudent sees danger and hides himself,
   but the simple go on and suffer for it."  Proverbs 22:3

"The wise in heart shall be called prudent."  Proverbs 16:21

"The simple believeth every word:  but the prudent man looketh well to to his going."  Proverbs 14:15

"He that regardeth reproof is prudent."  Proverbs 15:5

Habitaflex Homes

In my spare time, I sometimes find myself looking at unique home ideas.  I have it in mind to one day have a place debt free, by the grace of God. This dream is going to take some creativity to make it happen.  So, I look around for ideas. Here is one such creative option, indeed! I have no idea how much they cost. But the people who came up with these are very creative.


After I watched it, I wondered where all the furniture goes when it is folded down? Hm. I guess you have to get a Uhaul too? Well, it is still a pretty ingenious idea. I am all for it! It might just beat the grain bin home or yurt I was thinking about earlier. Now, I just need a little plot of land.

Love Comments, Hate Captcha

Hi Friends,

May I share a little, teeny, weeny complaint with y'all and y'all promise to still love me?  You know that I looooooooove visiting blogs and leaving comments.  It's such fun, but it occurred to me though that it is a whole lot more fun if the comment settings are a little more relaxed.  You know I do have an older, slower computer, which I dearly love, don't get me wrong. 

Anyhow, just hear me on this one, please..  *grins*  

If you are using Blogger, have you given serious thought to how you have your commenting set up?  As a blogger, I think we owe it to our loyal readers to have our commenting set up as easy as possible for them. 

For example, If I come to your blog and want to leave you an awesome comment, I may have to hit a button to get to the actual comment screen.  Then I most likely have to leave a captcha code, so I have to wait for that screen to come up.  And then some blogs have an approval set up after that.  That's just overkill in my opinion. 

I understand why you might think you need all this "security."  No one wants to be spammed.  However, it is like trying to jump hoops to just leave a message.  And if you are not part of Blogger it is worse, I hear. 

I believe that all that needs to be done is to have your comments set on "approval."  And then if you are spammed, delete it.  It doesn't really happen very often.  And when it does, some of the spam is quite comical. 

Or at the very least, have your captcha set on the same page as your comment so that the blogger doesn't have to click another button and wait for the page to come up. 

Just a thought.... Say you still love me?  *wink*
Jenn

Weekly Wrap-Up

In which I decided to do my wrap-up a bit different.

Eastern Hemisphere, our focus of study this year.

Monday: 

Enjoyed homeschool gym at our local community center.  The instructor quit a again, so this week the director led the class.  It was funny to see her in high heals leading a big gym class.  Her helper was about 9 months pregnant and could not bend over to set up the bases.  But they try!

I took 2 big bags of the boys clothes and gave them to a new friend.  I could not believe there were so many thing in their closets that they had outgrown.  I was glad to bless my friend.

We came home and started a few new books:  Prudence with the Millers, A Glorious Age in Africa, and Beat the Story-Drum, Pum-Pum.  We are sointinuing with the biography on David Livingstone. 

Monday afternoon I took Grace to dance and enjoyed an hour of silence by myself in the van.  The sun was shining and I really loved that time alone. 

View of the new addition at church. 

Tuesday:

Ran to the store before lessons for one thing.  Had Trevor with me.  The nice clerk asked if he was enjoying spring break.  Took a moment to educate clerk about his questions about home education.  Spent too much money and felt guilty about my post that was published on keeping to a budget.  *blush*  But I had to buy grapes for the lunch I was invited to and while I was there I saw meat half priced and six other things we were out of.  This is why I don't go for one thing!  *ugh*

After morning lessons, I met with 3 friends to have lunch.  I have never done this during a school day before.  Wow!  It was great.  Until I came home to find out there had been a fight.  So, I guess that won't be happening again.  I will take "the" child with me next time.

Wednesday:

Just two things on my mind... BLUEBIRDS and eating fruit!  My ten day fast came to an end.  Really, I do not crave white flour or refined sugar at this point.  What I really missed was fruit.  I am continuing on to Wave Two of Sonoma.  I get to eat fruit!  (I'll skip the wine though.)

Love you, banana. 

Thursday:  

Decided that getting lessons done and the house in order was a bigger priority than getting groceries.  Waiting another day won't hurt us since I made a mini trip on Tuesday. 

Speaking of the house getting in order, it occurred to me that I have lost the help of my children somehow again.  It happens very slowly.  And then one day I wake up and notice that they are having all the fun and I am doing all the work.  I am wise to them and called a family meeting.


Ended up that being home was a wonderful idea because our huge box of books for next year arrived from Sonlight!  The kids and I looked through the books.  No one can wait until next year.  We will probably have to start early.  The boys had a paper fight with the packing materials.  I put together my new binder.  Hooray! 

Friday:

Took a planned day off from school to get groceries and a new coffee grinder.  Speaking of school, it was a great week.  Here is Ryan's Arabian Tale.

The Story of Akil and Aswad

A long time ago, there lived in a large city a wise, strong man who was very rich. His name was Akil, which means ‘The one who uses reason’. He inherited his riches from his hardworking father, and lived with his wife, Zahrah, who was the most beautiful woman in the city, and his children. The men of the city praised Akil for his wisdom, and his four sons and two daughters loved him.

But one day, as he was sleeping, fifteen robbers, who were stronger than they were wise, silently broke into his home, robbing and kidnapping him. He was taken far north, to the oasis west of the mountain. The chief robber was Aswad, a man who was as evil as he was smart. Akil was put in a tent, alone with guards at the door.

At night, Akil (who was a wise man, do not forget) sharpened a stick and made a knife. With his knife, he cut a whole in the back of the tent. Stealing one of the Aswad’s horses, he made his way south to his city, knowing the route because he had been to the oasis many times as a child, and had brought his own sons hunting the gazelle that lived there.

After he had ridden for almost two hours, he was home. His wife and children had missed him, but not knowing where the robbers took him, they could not look for him. Akil knew that Aswad would move camp so that his thieves could not be found, but helped the city’s men ride out to capture Aswad’s robbers.

When they got to the oasis, it was clear that Aswad had moved camp the day before, and that they moved west. The group of men rode after the robbers, as fast as they could. In an hour, they overtook Aswad’s men, who attacked Akil’s men, hoping to escape. But the city’s men outnumbered the robbers, and soon they were led back to the city to be punished.

Akil’s vast riches were recovered, along with the riches of other men who had been robbed. The city secretly increased security, and although Aswad tried to escape to murder Akil, he was stopped. 
The end.  

I thought he did a good job with this assignment.  Grace is writing her story in the African style and will have hers done soon.  Perhaps she will let me publish it here.  It's about a Prudent Turtle, I think. 

Love that face!

So there you have our week.  I hope yours was good as well.
~Jenn